PM Nguyen Tan Dung Dung chairs a regular government meeting  for June in Hanoi (Photo: VGP)

(VOVworld)- The Government convened its regular meeting on June 30 to assess the country’s socio-economic, security, defence and external relations situation in June and the first half of 2014 and define the major tasks for the rest of the year. Chairing the video meeting, which was also participated by leaders of localities nationwide, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said the meeting takes place at a time when China had illegally placed its drilling rig Haiyang 981 inside Vietnam’s waters since May 2 in defiance of the law, morality and Vietnamese-Chinese relations. He said China’s move not only seriously violated Vietnam’s sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction and affected relations between the two countries, but also gravely threatens peace, stability and security in the region. PM Dung underlined that under the circumstances, it is crucial to exert every effort to safeguard national sovereignty by peaceful measures conforming with international law, and at the same time maintain an environment of peace, stability, security and order to serve the country’s socio-economic development. Dung asked cabinet members, local authorities and delegates at the meeting to use all measures at the highest resolve to successfully fulfil all the yearly targets set earlier. At the meeting, the Minister of Planning and Investment Bui Quang Vinh reported that positive progress has been seen in the first half of the year, with controlled inflation, a low consumer price index (CPI) rise, stable market prices and balanced supply and demand. He said exports maintained high growth and that the country continued to enjoy a trade surplus. The minister said that GDP growth in the first six months of the year reached 5.18 percent, much higher than that of two years ago. The meeting will continue through July 1, during which the government is to discuss a number of reports, including those on the restructuring progress of State-owned enterprises and the East Sea situation and the measures of response.